


That's a Big One

by InquisitorsFancyHats



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Gen, Post-Game, multiplayer characters, some Trespasser spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-29
Updated: 2015-10-29
Packaged: 2018-04-28 17:53:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,345
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5100128
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InquisitorsFancyHats/pseuds/InquisitorsFancyHats
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Isabela and her crew were only supposed to pick up some papers from Antiva City. Easy.</p>
            </blockquote>





	That's a Big One

**Author's Note:**

> This was written as a prize from my fic raffle over on Tumblr. The prompt was Isabela and mermaids.
> 
> Slight spoiler warning for Trespasser DLC.

The plan had been to go east. Not entirely east, of course, since there wasn’t actually anything out there, but east enough to avoid the naval patrol and then loop back around and steer for Antiva City. When had Ferelden even gotten a navy? And what were they doing so far north in the sea?

Isabela slogged to shore, ignoring the squelching sound her boots were making. Maybe the other ship had been taken by pirates and the Ferelden heraldry was a cover. Or a mutiny. Maybe Ferelden was scouting out the Qunari after the whole “take-out-every-world-leader-via-magical-mirrors-and-explosives” stunt they’d pulled a couple months ago. If Isabela hadn’t been an agent of the Inquisition during the whole fiasco, she probably wouldn’t have believed it. Magical mirrors? Sure, she’d seen those.

But qunari using them?

Honestly, she’d never thought she’d see the day when Qunari willingly used magic. The world was ending, she was sure of it.

And now her boat was sinking. Again.

Isabela watched silently, hands fisted on her hips, as her schooner tipped, groaned, and finally capsized. The half dozen crew members she’d brought along with her were scrabbling their way out of the water and onto the rocky island. It was small, practically a finger sticking up out of the water, with a grand total of two trees and an incredibly ugly looking seal.

“Remind me again why we took that detour?”

“Didn’t want to sail within shooting distance of that feet, seeing as how Ferelden and the Inquisition have been trading slaps for the past couple weeks.” Isabela turned towards Thornton, who’d been sent along with some other field agents to get their ship to Antiva. Apparently Thornton had used a rowboat once, and that counted as enough naval experience to make him her first mate. “Also we have a qunari on board.”

Thornton glanced over his shoulder in time to witness Katari strip down entirely and begin to shake the water out of his clothes. “I killed a sea-wyvern once, you know!” the qunari boomed, gesturing dramatically to the other soldiers on the shore. The only response he got was Tamar losing her breakfast behind one of the trees. It seemed reavers and water didn’t mix.

Isabela sighed and adjusted her hat. At least it wasn’t boiling hot, and she was certain they could last long enough for another trade ship to go by. But there was still the matter of food and water. Aside from whatever bags they’d swam ashore with, they’d lost it all in the wreck. “Go see what we’ve got left. I’m going to get us something to eat.”

She unhooked her crossbow from her belt and stalked closer to the seal. The creature hadn’t moved since it’d rolled over to watch them arrive. Isabela wondering if it was stuck. Well, it didn’t matter since it was about to be food. Isabela loaded her bolt, aimed, and-

Someone screamed from behind her and the seal began to furiously wiggle its way back into the sea. Isabela turned as Neria latched onto her arm. “Captain, the water ate Rion!” the elf exclaimed. “A hand just came out a snatched him!” She imitated the grabbing motion, nearly poking out Isabela’s eye as she did so.

The seal was long gone by this point and Isabela hurried over to the rest of the group. Thornton had scaled the tree and knocked an arrow, while Katari and Tamar had formed a line at the shore, weapons raised. About six feet out, the water was bubbling furiously, marking the spot where the mage had gone under. “Do we have any rope? I can shoot out a line and we can pull him back to shore.” If there was anything left of him. Isabela couldn’t figure out what had dragged the mage under; her first thought had been a hungry whale, but the crew had mentioned a hand.

Maker’s golden buttcheeks, what sea creature had hands?

Then the water exploded, quite literally. Rion went catapulting out of the sea and onto the island, landing with a very wet-sounding slap. He sat up immediately, electricity from his magic still dancing over his fingers and sparking off of his clothes. He was now sporting a collection of nasty slices up and down his arms. “Get away from the shore! It’s coming back!”

Tamar and Katari took a step back just as the water erupted again. A roar followed and the entire group hurried further inland as the creature landed heavily on the shore. It was enormous- its tail alone was easily six feet long, topped with a human torso. The tail was spiked and long, clawed hands slashed angrily through the air as it tried to snatch one of its quarry. It hissed, revealing not only a nasty pair of fangs but two sets of teeth.

A large, red blister (the impact of Rion’s storm spell, Isabela guessed) marred its chest, along with a dozen other jagged scars. It was hideous, and Isabela had no idea what I was. It reminded her a bit of a ghast, but bigger and with dragon mixed in.

“Is that a darkspawn?!” Thornton shouted from his perch in the tree. The creature’s top half certainly looked like a darkspawn- it was skeletal and the scales that covered it were a nasty purple-grey. It was even making that disgusting chattering noise darkspawn made.

“Just kill it!” Rion wailed from the ground as the creature began to claw its way through the sand to get closer to its prey. “It’s going to eat us all and we’ll die!”

Nobody moved, and Isabela could hardly blame them. If it was a darkspawn, then fighting it meant possibly contracting the blight. And if it wasn’t a darkspawn, then they had no idea what it was or what it could do. What if it shot poison or something equally revolting?

Katari let out a bellow of excitement. “A sea-wyvern!” he declared, pointing his greatsword at the creature. “I’ve fought them once, and now I’ll have slain a matching set!” Before anyone could stop him, the qunari charged, swinging his sword down to attack-

-and was promptly broadsided by a powerful tail swipe that sent him slamming into the tree with enough force to dislodge Thornton.

“Dread Wolf’s droppings!” Neria cursed from the side, summoning up a giant fist of rock and hurling it at the beast’s face. The stone hit with enough force to crack scales and knock the sea creature onto its side. That certainly got its attention and is struggled angrily, aiming for the elven mage.

Isabela grabbed Rion by the collar and pulled him to his feet. “Get up and help her!” she ordered, jabbing a finger at Neria. “You don’t have to kill it, but scare it away.” Rion looked like he wanted to melt into the ground and stay there until the Maker returned, but reluctantly began shooting off fireballs in retaliation.

At least now the beast knew they weren’t going to be easy pickings. Thornton and Isabela had joined in the fight by peppering it with arrows and Tamar and Katari had settled for throwing rocks and yelling insults. Nobody was going to try to fight it close up after witnessing Rion getting pulled under.

Finally, the creature gave up. It howled angrily and flung itself backwards, into the sea. It disappeared beneath the waves almost instantly, leaving the group frazzled and exhausted on the island.

“Was that really a sea-wyvern?” Tamar asked dubiously, sheathing her weapon.

“Of course it was!” Katari replied, “I’ve killed one! And if I ever see that one again, I’ll add its skull to my collection!”

Isabela shook her head and dug for the flint she kept in her pockets. They needed to start a signal fire. “Well whatever it is, it’s gone. And we need to get off this island before it comes back."

"Or we starve."

"Or run out of water."

"Or kill each other."

"Or-"

"Thank you, now please get me some wood before I set your clothes on fire!"


End file.
